Enlarge image
Among other things, Shehbaz Sharif wants to improve relations with the United States
Photo: AAMIR QURESHI / AFP
Pakistani opposition leader Shehbaz Sharif has been elected prime minister after the no-confidence vote against Imran Khan.
174 of the 374 MPs voted for Sharif on Monday, as the speaker of the parliament in the capital Islamabad announced.
After the election, Sharif described the economic problems as a major challenge.
"We'll have to shed sweat and blood to get the economy going again," he said.
He also announced that he would improve relations with the influential military, but also with the United States.
Khan's party friends left Parliament in droves
During the night, tens of thousands of people across the country protested against the impeachment of former cricket star Khan.
Khan's ruling PTI party announced a mass resignation from parliament ahead of the election.
Dozens of MPs left the hall in protest.
Khan was removed from office by a vote of no confidence on Sunday night.
This was preceded by a political crisis in the South Asian nuclear power that lasted for days.
The former prime minister had come under increasing pressure because of the severe economic crisis in the country.
Observers see challenging times ahead for the new prime minister.
Prices for petrol, gas and food have recently risen massively in the South Asian country with more than 220 million inhabitants.
Ex-Prime Minister Khan recently had to introduce more taxes in order for the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to pay out another tranche of an aid program for the country.
The 70-year-old Shehbaz Sharif comes from the political dynasty of the Sharifs, a family of successful industrialists.
Like his older brother Nawaz Sharif, he worked in the family business before his political career.
In his home country, the populous province of Punjab, Shehbaz Sharif was prime minister for three terms and primarily drove infrastructure projects forward.
Corruption allegations against the Sharifs
After the military coup in 1999, Sharif and his family went into exile in Saudi Arabia.
Eight years later he returned to politics, first as head of government in Punjab.
In 2018 he was elected to the National Assembly, later elected leader of the opposition.
The Sharif family has repeatedly been accused of corruption.
Nawaz Sharif, for example, appeared in the Panama Papers, which cost him his position as prime minister.
He was sentenced to several years in prison.
Sharif, who is still facing criminal charges, flew to the UK for medical treatment at the end of 2019.
Shehbaz Sharif has also been arrested and charged several times.
After allegations of corruption had not been substantiated, he was released again.
The opposition saw such allegations as politically motivated.
svs/dpa/Reuters